True Feelings
by hollowblade
Summary: Naruto is hesitent on replying to Hinata's confession because he is unsure of his feelings for her. So who better to help him out then the one at the center of this distress, Hyuuga Hinata. Naruhina, Duh. Oneshot.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or any of its characters...blah, blah, blah...yata, yata, yata...you all know what I mean.

* * *

"Itadakimasu!" Uzumaki Naruto was sitting in front of the new Ichiraku Ramen stand getting ready to dig in to a large bowl of ramen. The moment he heard the place was rebuilt, he had to be the first one to eat there. However, just as he was about introduce his taste buds to one of the most delicious meals in the world, a certain pink-haired shinobi plopped down onto the seat next to him.

"I knew I'd find you here." Sakura said.

"Yeah well, there was no way I could pass this up!"

Sakura sat there silently as Naruto ate his entire bowl in what seemed like no time at all. When he was done, he immediately asked for a refill. As the second bowl was being prepared Sakura spoke up again. "I noticed that you didn't mention to the others what you said to Sasuke."

"I just don't want them to worry."

"More like you don't want them to try and stop you."

Again, they both fell silent. The second bowl was prepared and Naruto began eating. A few seconds went by until Sakura spoke up again. "Although, I can understand why you might have been afraid to say anything. She was there was well."

"Hmm?" Naruto looked at her with noodles hanging out of his mouth.

"That's gross." Sakura commented. "Anyway, you know who I'm talking about. I mean, you were so quick to reject me that I assumed that…you know…"

Naruto slurped up his noodles and let out a heavy sigh. "Yeah, I know who you're talking about, and honestly, I don't know what I think of her."

"Huh? How can you not know?" Sakura said skeptically.

"I've only ever thought of her as a friend, a comrade, nothing more than that." Naruto answered. "so, when she confessed, I didn't know what to make of it. It kind of through me off guard."

"Well, if you only see her as a friend, then tell her so. It's better than not giving any answer at all."

"I know, I want to...but…"

"Hm? But what?"

"I don't know."

"You said that already."

"No, I mean…" Naruto gave out another sigh. "Maybe I'm just thinking too hard, but after her confession I definitely felt something. I'm not entirely sure what that feeling is though. I could just feel embarrassed for never noticing her feelings for me, guilty for having her to watch me chase after for years, or maybe I'm actually developing, you know, feelings for her. I really don't know. That's why I can't answer her." Naruto slurped down the last of his ramen and slowly got up from his seat. "Well, I've got some things to do so, see ya."

Naruto placed his hands in his pockets and began to slowly walk down the street. When he was finally out of earshot Ayame began to speak up. "To be young and in love."

"Huh?" Sakura asked with a confused look on her face. "What are you talking about; he just said he didn't know how he felt."

"Oh, I think he does. After that little speech he just made, you can't deny that he has feelings for her." Ayame paused for a second so that that Sakura could let it sink in. "Anyway, the problem isn't whether he has feelings for her or not, it's whether he can recognize them and accept them as they truly are."

* * *

Naruto was sitting down and leaning on the middle log that was sticking from the ground at the training area. The training ground held a very special place in his heart. Not only was it where he had achieved the rank of Genin, but this is also where he had first really spoken to Hinata. He looked toward his left, eyeing the log next to him, the one she had hid behind on that day. He reminisced on how she had managed to cheer him up from his unusual depression that morning on the day of the Third Chunin Exam. He remembered how she told him that his cheering had given her the confidence needed to fight Neji on her own, and what he said as a response to that was something that even now confuses him. Naruto had told her his inner most thoughts and feelings; of how he was always afraid of messing up, putting up a front so that no one would know, and constantly boasting to appear tougher then he actually was.

"But why…did I tell her that." That was something he had never told anyone before, and to this day he has never admitted it to anyone else.

"N-Naruto?" He turned his head back and saw the one person he was not prepared to encounter had just appeared right in front of him. Bright blue met with lavender, and time seemed to stand still. Naruto sat frozen in place, unsure on what to say or do; all he could do was just look at her with a nervous look on his face.

"Naruto, is s-something wrong?" Hinata asked.

The sincerity that was present in her eyes made Naruto even more nervous and he had begun to blush a little. "Um, wrong? Nothing's wrong, haha. I'm just a little…tired that's all." Naruto quickly answered, rising up from the ground and wearing the infamous grin that he had used for so many years to hide his feelings. Naruto looked back at Hinata and could tell immediately that she wasn't buying any of it.

"I-it's about Sasuke i-isn't." Hinata managed to say. "There's more th-that you're not t-telling us, right?"

Damn, why was she so perceptive? Was it really that obvious, or was it that she just understood him too well. Naruto paused before answering her, and let out a small sigh. "Yeah, it's about Sasuke."

"W-well, I don't think you r-really need to worry about it." Hinata answered back with a smile. "I mean, I know f-for sure that you'll be able to bring him back, because th-that's just the kind of person. You're not s-someone who w-would give up s-so easily."

Naruto couldn't help but smile, not a mask to put up a front, but a genuine smile. Did she really have that much confidence in his abilities? However, he just couldn't bring himself to tell her the truth.

"Naruto, you're crying."

Naruto quickly rubbed his cheek, and sure enough, there was a small trace of a tear that had escaped from his left eye. He didn't even notice that his eyes had begun to water.

"Hinata, the thing about Sasuke is that…" Naruto stopped, afraid to go on. However, he knew that it was something that he wasn't going to be able to keep a secret for long. "I am going to confront Sasuke soon. When we fought at The Final Valley, he told me that shinobi of high enough caliber could tell what their intentions were just by exchanging blows. Well, we exchanged fists again at the Kage Summit and I saw what the outcome of our next confrontation would be." Again, Naruto paused, having to force out the next sentence. "Hinata, neither Sasuke nor I will come back from our next fight alive."

Naruto already knew what her reaction was going to be even before he finished that last sentence. He tried to prepare himself for it, but the shock of what he had said hit her hard. The anguish in her eyes made Naruto's chest tighten to the point where it hit hurt to even look at her. However, this lasted only a second, for Hinata put on a smile, a smile that Naruto was all too familiar with. It was the false grin he had always worn when he could never admit to his own sadness.

"I-it's alright N-Naruto, I-I understand." Hinata stuttering had become even more erratic, and she was using all of her mental strength just to keep herself from bursting out into tears. "Th-this is s-something that y-you need t-to do and…"

"No!" Naruto had reached out and grabbed Hinata, his hands clutching onto her arms.

"N-Naruto…"

"No, this isn't right. You shouldn't have to hold it in. You have every right to be angry at me, every right to be upset. I don't want you to hold back for my sake." Naruto was glaring down into Hinata's eyes, hoping that it all got through to her. However, a small grin appeared on the young Hyuuga's face, a real smile.

"No, I could never be angry at you or yell at you. I could never bring myself to hate you, for any reason." With her stuttering gone and her confidence restored, Hinata leaned in closer and rested her head on the blonde boy's chest, causing Naruto's face to turn a bright shade of red. "I know I've already told you this, but I want to say it again. I love you Naruto, I always have, and I always will. Ever since we were younger, I have always harbored feelings for you. However, back then I could only recognize it as admiration. I never really understood how deep my feelings for you really were."

With his left hand resting on her right shoulder and his right hand wrapped around her waist, Naruto began to slowly tighten his grip. He could understand what she was telling him completely, for this was what he was feeling right now. He could not seem to grasp what his feelings for Hinata really are. Was he afraid? Was he afraid that his feelings for Hinata were stronger then had first believed, or was it that he was afraid that he won't be able to return those feelings?

Their younger days, he had no doubt she was referring to their days as Genin, before Sasuke abandoned Konoha. Memories of those days and Hinata began to fill his head. One by one, each memory came and left, only to give way to the next one, almost like flipping a long series of pictures in order to create a moving picture.

"_I never go back on my word, because that too is my ninja way!_"

"_If you ask me, you're a proud failure."_

"_You make mistakes…but you still have the guts to get back up and keep fighting…that's what I consider true strength."_

"_You helped me find my way and take the correct path, Naruto…I always chased after you…wanting to catch up…wanting to walk with you forever…I want to be at your side, always…you changed me, Naruto! Your smiling face saved me! And that's why I'm not afraid to die, defending you!! Because…I love you…"_

Then it hit him, like running into a brick wall. That single, intense realization…it was powerful. His heart skipped a beat, and his body had stiffened. However, that only lasted a second. He had now finally come to terms with his feelings. His body loosened, like having a large burden being lifted from your shoulders.

"But…" Hinata continued, slowly leaving Naruto's embrace. "I already know that you w-won't be able to return my feelings, and I've accepted it."

Naruto was taken aback by this. "What are you talking about?"

"Everyone knows it, Naruto. You've always had a c-crush on Sakura, ever since our academy days and those feelings haven't wavered since then."

Naruto just starred at Hinata with a blank expression on his face, and then he couldn't help but begin to laugh. Hinata was surprised by this sudden change in attitude, but before she could ask why, Naruto had pulled her back and fully embraced her. "Hinata, you couldn't be more wrong." Naruto raised his head and looked deep into Hinata's beautiful lavender eyes. "You want to know something, Hinata? Back at the Kage Summit, Sakura tried to confess to me, and you wanna what I did then." Naruto let his bare forehead meat with her, and gave a now blushing Hinata a big grin. "I rejected her."

Seeing the look on Hinata's face was absolutely priceless in Naruto's eyes. There was no way of hiding the complete and absolute shock that had taken over her face. "Y-you rejected her…?" Even though she was able to say it, it was obvious that she still wasn't entirely sure that she heard right.

"Yep, and not without good reason either." Naruto began, lifting his head back up from Hinata's. "The only reason she confessed was so she could try to get me to stop chasing Sasuke, so it was more like a bluff then a real confession. Also, it's way too obvious that she still has strong feelings for Sasuke. Her actions at the Kage Summit pretty much proved that." Naruto paused, his left hand slowly moved up her back, caressing her silky, dark blue hair. "And now, there's another reason as well." Naruto pulled Hinata in closer, causing her face to go the brightest shade of red that Naruto ever saw, and he found it absolutely adorable. "Hinata, I have never known anyone that understands me as well as you do. You are able to see everything; my sadness, my loneliness, my determination, my stubbornness, my screw ups, and my successes. You see everything about me and you love me, unconditionally, for who I've always been, and not just who I've become. You know everything about me, and yet, I hardly know anything about you. I want to learn more about you, spend time with you." Naruto and Hinata were now very close to one another, the closest two people can possibly be. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that, Hinata, I think I'm falling for you." And as Naruto finished that last sentence, he brought up his hand behind Hinata's head and pulled her towards him, allowing his lips to meet hers. This action took Hinata by surprise, but she returned it at full force. Hinata wrapped her arms around Naruto and pulled him towards herself, holding him tightly. By then, their innocent kiss had turned over toward the more passionate side. Their heated embrace had lasted for a good couple of minutes before they finally parted.

"N-Naruto, that was wonderful." Hinata was now, once again, resting her head in Naruto's chest, as Naruto was now, again, on the ground and leaning on the middle log, holding Hinata in his arms.

"Yeah, that was great. To bad it wasn't my first." Hinata giggled at Naruto's joke, which in turn caused him to give a little chuckle himself. "Hinata?"

"Yes." Hinata replied. Her eyes were closed and her heartbeat had begun to steady. She was obviously beginning to fall asleep.

"I want you to know, that from know on, I will always be here for you. I never want to leave your side." And with that, both Naruto and Hinata fell into a deep slumber, each embracing the other in their arms.

* * *

**Author's Note:** This just a little something something I did on a whim. Actually, the only reason I can give for doing this is my own desire to actually see Naruto give some kind of reply to Hinata. I mean, honestly, is there nothing worse then leaving a girl hanging like that? I know that Naruto is a shounen manga, but seriously, it won't hurt anyone if it had at least a bit of common romantic sense. But listen to me ramble, I talk as if I know any better. Truth is, this is my first time writing a romantic fic. So, this is were you guys, my readers, come in. You know that rate/review button down there, right. Well really need you to review this and tell me how I did. Whether you think it sucked or that it was totally awesome, it doesn't matter to me. What I do care about is pure, honest criticism that may help me improve my writing.

**P.S.** If anyone reading this has also read the other story I just started, Jinchuuriki Redemtion, and is worried that this may put my schedule on it back a little, don't be. The next chapter for that will come up on schedule, which means it will be uploaded on Saterday night, or Sunday morning at the latest.

**P.S.S.** For anyone might care. You know what happened with Naruto this weeks chapter, where he was reversed summoned to Myobokuzan. Well, I wanted to incorporate that by having Naruto be reversed summoned at the end of the story and have really pissed off at the frogs, you know, just as a little humor. I decided against it at the last second. I had it typed it up and everything, but it just didn't feel right, so I got rid of it.


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